AFS Centennial Brochure

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A NEW DIRECTION FOR THE NEXT 100 YEARS

CELEBRATING THE LEGACY OF THE AMERICAN FIELD SERVICE

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FS began as the American Field Service, which had its origins in 1914 shortly after the start of World War I. Young Americans living in Paris volunteered as ambulance drivers at the American Ambulance Hospital just outside the city.

The American Field Service took part in every major French battle of World War I, with its 2,500 volunteer drivers carrying supplies and more than 500,000 casualties. Reactivated during World War II, some 2,200 volunteer drivers served in France, North Africa, the Middle East, Italy, Germany, India and Burma, and carried more than 700,000 casualties from both sides of the war.

In 1946, after bearing witness to the horrors of the war, volunteer American Field Service ambulance drivers founded AFS, a nonprofit dedicated to international exchange and intercultural learning.

Recruitment Poster, American Field Service RĂŠserve Mallet. 1917*

Today, thanks to the partnership of thousands of like-minded supporters like you, we have program activities in more than 100 countries and send more than 12,000 young people and adults on exchange programs each year.

AFS AND THE AMERICAN PRESIDENTS

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ver the decades, many American presidents have lauded AFS for its contributions to US public diplomacy efforts. American presidents often invited AFS students to the White House to speak to them about their roles in fostering international cooperation.

President Lyndon B. Johnson surrounded

by AFS Participants at the White House.

July 20, 1964* President Dwight D. Eisenhower meets AFS bus trip participants on the White House lawn. August 7, 1954*

President John F. Kennedy with AFS Director General Stephen Galatti. July 13, 1961*

AFS ambulance drivers from SSU 1 with Khaki the dog in Flanders, Belgium. 1915*

AFS Driver Jay Nierenberg trading tea for eggs near Misurata, Libya. March 1943. Photo by John C. Cobb II.*

AFS Driver and actor Robert Montgomery with AFS Driver and sculptor Stuart Benson in Paris, France. June 1, 1940. Photograph by Acme (Paris).*

President Gerald R. Ford and AFS President Stephen Rhinesmith greet AFS Participants at the White House. July 13, 1976*

President Bill Clinton meets AFS Participants in 2011.*

“ It is going to be your destiny, I hope, to serve in the interest of peace as a bridge between the best parts of my country and your people. I hope that you go from here not merely as a friend but understanding our faults and our assets.”

– John F. Kennedy, 1961

President Barack Obama with AFS Students from Costa Rica and former NASA astronaut Franklin Chang Diaz.

2013

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BUILDING A FOUNDATION FOR THE NEXT 100 YEARS

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s the legacy of the American Field Service enters its second century, AFS-USA has never been stronger or more committed to enhancing its position as a leader in providing lifechanging intercultural education experiences.

With the implementation of a new strategic plan, AFS-USA is well positioned not only to sustain its signature high school study abroad programs, but also produce innovative new intercultural learning models for students, teachers and adults, both inside and outside of today’s “global classroom.”

As we plan for the next 100 years, we’ve established the Second Century Campaign to help realize our new strategic plan to move beyond being recognized exclusively as a high school exchange organization to one that provides programs, services and products that help people of all ages develop their global competency skills.

Our Strategic Targets • R eposition AFS-USA beyond that of an exchange organization • Expand and diversify revenue • A ttract, develop, retain and motivate the best talent to reach future organizational goals • R e-imagine the volunteer role in AFS-USA for the future • D evote ourselves to becoming a true customerfocused organization

AFS Participants in New York City during the first bus trip. 1948.

Photo by Carl Zeigler.*

AFS Students holding signs representing their home countries in Point Park, atop Lookout Mountain Battlefield in Chattanooga, TN. July 1948.

Photo by Carl Zeigler.*

HOW YOU CAN CHANGE LIVES

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hether you are making a first-time gift to AFS-USA or an additional gift during this milestone anniversary, the Second Century Campaign is a way to ensure that your donation will have an immediate impact on the organization’s future.

The mission and work of AFS is as important today as it was back in 1914 when the American Field Service was established, and our presence is a testament to our mission’s continuing relevance and our ability to endure through decades.

Your gift to the Second Century Campaign will be used as philanthropic capital to support the future of AFS-USA at this critical time with new programs and initiatives to ensure that AFS remains as relevant tomorrow as it is today.

Above: Cover of a booklet about the AFS Programs, circa 1957. Photo by George Holton* Left: AFS Roster of Students 1953-54

AFS Participants of 1963-64 aboard the Seven Seas traveling to their programs in Europe.

Seven Seas ship map from class of 1963-64 voyage.

Stephen Galatti with a group containing AFS Participants at a farewell party and bus stop. Salt Lake City, Utah. 1959.*

SENDING MORE AMERICANS ABROAD THROUGH SCHOLARSHIPS

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hanks to the generous support of AFS alumni, families, volunteers, and our corporate and foundation funders, AFS-USA is able to award scholarships or financial aid to nearly half of the American students studying abroad with AFS each year. We believe that all students who want to study abroad should have an opportunity to do so, and are especially committed to reaching out to students in underserved communities.

NEED-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS AFS-USA’s Global Leaders Financial Aid program offers scholarships to students whose families demonstrate financial need.

MERIT-BASED SCHOLARSHIPS AFS-USA awards partial and full scholarships to students demonstrating academic excellence and strong leadership abilities.

By partnering with nationally known youth mentoring organizations in underrepresented communities around the country, AFS-USA’s Faces of America Scholarship program has awarded full-tuition scholarships to nearly 1,000 high-achieving students from low-income families since the program’s inception in 2007.

NATIONAL SCHOLARSHIP FUND Through the National Scholarship Fund, AFS-USA provides both need- and merit-based scholarships to students across the country.

CREATING INNOVATIVE INTERCULTURAL LEARNING PROGRAMS AFS-USA sends more teenagers abroad on year and semester programs than any other exchange organization in the US. As we keep our commitment to high school students who want to study abroad for a year, semester or summer to meet the needs of our growing global society, we must also focus on programs, products and services for all ages. By developing innovative new programs, including those customized to educators and groups, and by providing intercultural training and services, not only do we improve our financial viability, but we expand our mission to people of all ages.

DEVELOPING SCHOOL OUTREACH AND EDUCATIONAL PARTNERSHIPS AFS-USA is committed to being a viable, prominent, change-making educational organization in an everchanging globalized world. We are committed to targeted outreach to all kinds of educators and schools and to developing educational partnerships that foster global competency through intercultural learning resources.

AFS Participants from different regions of the world during their arrival orientation at the C.W. Post Campus in Long Island, NY. 1973*

AFS Participants saying goodbye at Departure Day. 1978*

CHAMPIONS OF THE SECOND CENTURY

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hampions of the Second Century are deeply committed AFSers like you, who can make a world of difference through a very special gift to honor the Centennial of the American Field Service.

By joining us as a Champion of the Second Century, you’ll help to provide more opportunities for deserving young Americans to study abroad with AFS-USA.

“ My AFS year in Italy changed my life, giving me the confidence to fully immerse myself in another culture and language. That transformative year was really my first step into what I do now in international journalism and I often call upon my AFS experience when I face challenges covering some of the world’s hotspots in the Middle East.”

Richard Engel NBC News Chief Foreign Correspondent AFS Returnee, US to Italy, 1990-91

“ My exchange to Brazil in 1970 so profoundly changed my life that when I was able to give back, I knew exactly what I would do. Together with my husband, Michael, we founded the Speedwell Foundation AFS Scholarship Program in Pennsylvania and most recently in South Carolina. It has been a joy and a privilege to experience firsthand how AFS and Speedwell have changed the lives of more than 100 teenagers and affected their families, friends, high schools and communities. The program we created with AFS is one of the best returns on investment that we have experienced. We encourage others to consider developing scholarship programs like ours.”

Jenny K. Messner Chair of The Second Century Campaign Speedwell Foundation AFS Scholarship Program AFS Returnee, US to Brazil, 1970-71

“ Tom Greenough was Mark Whitcraft’s mentor in high school who also happened to be an American Field Service ambulance driver in World War II. Some years later, Mark’s wife, Rosemary, became passionately involved in AFS as a volunteer and staffer. So as a family, we experienced the breadth of the AFS tradition, from its ambulance driver roots to its still vital role as an intercultural exchange leader. We are proud to support AFS-USA and honor Tom and Rosemary’s memory who, each in their own way, represent the AFS legacy.”

“ My AFS experience in Luxembourg during the summer of 1973 changed my life in a thousand ways and helped me take the first step towards my subsequent career in diplomacy. We need AFS’s leadership in linking the next generation of Americans with people on every continent.”

R. Nicholas Burns Sultan of Oman Professor of the Practice of International Relations at the Harvard Kennedy School of Government AFS RETURNEE, US TO LUXEMBOURG, 1973 SUMMER PROGRAM

Whitcraft family Whitcraft Family Scholarships (National Scholarship Fund & Faces of America Scholarship)

AFS Faces of America Participants in US-Costa Rica Program. 2012 Americans Abroad Summer Program Participant Nancy Hill at her local chapter's welcome home event after her return from Jordan. August 1982*

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OUR MISSION AFS-USA works toward a more just and peaceful world by providing international and intercultural learning experiences to individuals, families, schools, and communities through a global volunteer partnership.

AFS-USA study abroad, hosting and volunteering promotional poster. 2014

Photo credits: Brochure cover photos: Top: AFS ambulance drivers with junior officers of the 51st Medium Artillery in Tunisia. 1943.

Photo by John C. Cobb II* Bottom: AFS Participants in US-Turkey Program. 2012 Mailing envelope: Center-Piatt Andrew and Stephen Galatti at 21 rue Raynouard, 1917. Photograph by H.C. Ellis.* Top right-AFS Participants and chaperones on the westbound crossing of the Seven Seas. August 25, 1964.* Bottom right-AFS Participants.

Undated.

Reply form photo: AFS World War II promotional poster, 1940*

AFS-USA is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization

Images indicated with * are courtesy of the Archives of the American Field Service and AFS Intercultural Programs. The holder of copyright for some of these items is unknown. Please contact AFS if you can help identify the copyright holder(s).�

All other images are from AFS-USA.

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